Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1887-05-28
:H Z:
N'HiStorzs OF: Nd0ehture
By J. RIDER HAGGARD.
J. RIDER HAGGARD.
CHAPTER x
sPEcULATIoNs.

relieved to hear, was to be our companion,
while the fifth presumed wns for the use Of
Us.ane.
"Does the lady go with us, my fotherY" /.
asked Of Billali as he stood experimenting
things generally
He shrugged his shoulders as he answered:
GIf sho wills. In this country the women do
what they please. We worship them and
give them their way, because without them
tho world could not go on; they dre the source
of life" ao
"Ah," / said, the matter never having
struck me In that light before.
ave worship them," he went on, 'up to a
certain point, till at last they get unbearable,
which, he added, 'they do about every sec
ond generation"
"And then what do you dol" asked, with
curiosity.
"Then.n he answered, with o faint smile,
"we rise, and kill tho old ones as an example
to the young ones, and to show them that we
are the strongest My poor wife was killed
III that way three years ago, 1t was very
sad, but to tell the truth, my son, life has
been happier since, for my age protects me
from the young ones"
an short" replied, quoting the saying Of
a great man whose wisdom has not yet light
ened the darkness of the Amahagger, "thou
hast found thy position one Of greater free
dom and less responsibility
This phrase puzzled him little at first from
its vagueness, though think my translation
hit Off its sense very well, but at last he saw
1t, and appreciated it.
eyes, yes, my Baboon," he said, Il see Il
now; but all the responsibilities arei killed
at least most OF them are, and that is why
there arc so few old women about Just now
Well, they brought ii on themselves. AS fol-
this girl" no went on, in graver tone, I"
know not what to say. She Is a brave girl
and she loves the Lion Leo: thou sawest how
she chung to him, and saved his life. Also
she is, according to our custom, wed 30 him
and she has right to go whore he goes, I'M
less" he added, significantly, "She SHOULD
say her no, for her word overrides al
rights,"
"And If She babe her leave him, and tn
girl refusedi What then9"
"If," he said, with shrug, ''the hurrican
bids the tree to bend, and it will not, wha
happens|
And then, without waiting for an answer
he turned and walked to hs litter, and in to-
| minutes from that time we were all WEI
under way
| 1t took us an hour and moro to cross th
| cup of abe volcanic plain. and another hal
hour or so to climb the edge on the furthe
side Once there. however, the Wow was
very fine one. Before us was long, stee
slope of grassy plain, broken here and thor
by clumps of trees mostly Of the thorn tribt
At the bottom Of the gentle slope, some min
or ten miles away, we could make out a dir
sea Of marsh, on which tho foul vapors hun
like smoke about city. It was easy goin
for the bearers down the slopes, and by mix
day we had reached tho borders OF the dism;
swamp Hero we halted TO eat our midda
meal, and then, following winding ON
devious path, plunged into the moraS
Presently tho path, at any rats to our unat
customed oye seemed to grow so faint as
Ae almost indistinguishablo from those mad
by tho aquatic beasts and birds, and u L. I
this day q mystery TO mo how our bearer
found their way across tho marshes s.Ahea
OF tho cavalcado marched two men with lon
polcs, which they now and again plunge
into tho ground before them, the reason bein
that tho nature Of tho soil frequently change
from causes with which l am NOT acquainted
so that places that would be safe enough I
cross ono month would certainly swano'
the wayfarer the next. Never did see
more dreary and depressing scene, Miles o
miles of quagnnire, varied only BY brigf
green strips OF comparatively solid grount
and by deep and sunten pools ffinged wit
tall rushes, in which the bitterns doomed an
|
Of IL without break, unless the fever fog ca
be called break. The only life in this gres
morass was that of the aquatic birds and Ii
animals who fed on them, Of both Of whic
there were vast numbers Geese, crane
ducks, teal, coot, snipe and ployer swarme
all around us, many being of varieties tbs
were quite new to mo, and all 80 tame thu
one could almost hayo knocked them owe
with a stick. Among these birds ] especial
noticed a very beautiful variety of painte
snipe, almost the size of woodcock, and wit
fight more resembling that bird than 0
English snipes In the pools, too, was speci,
Of small alligator or enormous iguana,
not know which, that fed, Billai told m
upon the water fowl; also large quantities
hideous black water snake, of which Il
bite is very dangerous, though not, gait
cred, so deadly as a cobra or puff adde
The bull frogs were also very large, and wit
voices proportionate to their size; and as fl
tho mosquitoes, they were, il possible, cvt
) worse than they had been on the river, al
tornented Us greatly. Undoubtedly, ho'
ever, the worst feature of the swamp was Il
awful smell Of rotting vegetation that hui
about it, that was at times positively owe
, powering, and the malarious exhalations tn
accompanied it, which we were, OF cours
= obliged to breathe.
! On we went through it all, till at last {
sun sunk in sullen splendor just aswe reach
g a spot OF rising ground about two acres In g
tent-a little oasis Of dry land in the midst
!. the miry wilderness-where Billah announc
u that we we're to camp. Tho camping, no
+. ever, turned out to be very simple proce
i ard consisted, in fact, in sitting down on
n crounl round scanty fire made OF dry rec
aud some wood that bad been brought vi